existential dichotomy

Publications

The paper includes research results of families, who have never applied to psychological counselling. To assess the normality and abnormality of parent and child
personality existential criterion was used. In these families a so-called balanced style of parenting was revealed. This style indicates the compromising parental
position in the education of their children concerning the existential dichotomies help and autonomy, nature and culture, self-actualization and conditional values,
determinism and self-determination. The study results suggest that this position is developed by parents independently and on a rational basis. In accordance with the
existential criterion mentioned above, characteristics of the educational position of parents indicate normality of their personality. It is shown that a balanced style of
parenting contributes to developing child personality type with a dual, contradictory orientation for both children and their parents when solving life problems. Children
with this type of personality, as well as their parents, manifest inherent willingness to compromise position towards the same existential dichotomies help and autonomy,
nature and culture, self-actualization and conditional values, determinism and self-determination. Thanks to a balanced style of parenting favourable personal prerequisites
for the development of normal personality are shown. As balanced style of parenting contributes to the normal development of child personality, these children have lack
personal prerequisites for emerging difficulties in social adaptation, and therefore in families with such style of solving parent-child problems, due to these difficulties are
completely absent.

The paper includes results of the research, where influence of main parenting styles on developing children’s personality and appearing child-parent problems were considered. It covers client families of psychological advice (with overprotection and over exactingness). It is indicated that the key factor emerging child-parent problems in this families is the abnormality of the parent personality identified through so-called existential criterion, which is displayed in their parenting styles. The parenting styles contribute to shaping child abnormal personality types, also identified through existential criteria are designated as “directed at external assistance”, “directed at complying with the requirements of other people” and “directed at protesting against compliance with the requirements of other people”. Children of such personality types have problems communicating with others as communication is addressed to children with normal personal development and is not relevant for abnormal personal abilities. As the problems mentioned above are connected with maladjustment to social environment requirements they can be classified as problems of social adaptation.

There is a connection of a personality type “directed at complying with the requirements of other people” with abnormal personality predisposed to various life problems
and mental disorders mentioned in the works of E. Fromm, S. Freud, A. Adler, Ń. Jung, C. Rogers, and V. Frankl. It suggests the understanding of the personality of this type
to be regarded as a classical type of personality which the authors mentioned above were dealing with in their psychotherapeutic practice at different times.